Dishonorable Discharge

inspired by two poems written by h.d.e. rushin

 

Dishonorable Discharge

 

 

i am a trans-genre poet,

short story eyes blink too fast to 

keep the attention span for a long tongue's tale to tell

 

my battles are over, 

poetry won out, 

it's who i am,

although now in circles

i will be regarded with red ink

and warnings of "cliché" armor

decking my halls..

 

that typewriter always accepted me as i am

but i have not felt that indulgence

i search fluently

but with fragmented guilt

 

my sentence is being served

the pen, my rifle

in what alludes itself to a prosy brig

 

i starve myself of emotion

trying to kill the muse's appetite

 

i won't be what they want me to be

i won't be what she wants me to be

 

i will shed my stripes and stars

all that mars 

the true self

 

and write a novel, finally

with dishonorable discharge

i march upon the keys

 

but can't get past

page one.

 

 

erin-cilberto

7/30/17

Reviews

[Cassie]

I relate to this write too much, my muses appetite is totally lost, tell me how do i get it back?

[jacob erin-cilberto]

it comes and goes at its will...we have little control
over when.
but it will , Cassie....i think reading poetry is one of the quickest ways to raise it from its sleep.

thank you
j.

[Papaya]

i starve myself of emotion
trying to kill the muse's appetite

that is brilliant - really like this one!

[jacob erin-cilberto]

thank you for your words, Ana.

j.

[Paul Bell]

Your country needs you.
Well in saying that. We don't need you, or you.
But of course that could 'change'.
Look upon it as positive discrimination. Now doesn't that tick all the boxes.

[jacob erin-cilberto]

yes, it ticks all the boxes...thank you, Paul...
j.

[John Alexander McFadyen]

This is a knock out tale of that battle to stay fresh and relevant as the writer tries for the marathon rather than the 100 metres and just cannot cope with the training. Flowing erudite poetry at its best Jacob.

[jacob erin-cilberto]

thank you for your insightful words, John.

j.